tax administration

The IRS Is In The Headlines. That Is Not A Good Thing

Remember the old marketing cliche: “I don’t care what you say about me as long as you spell my name right.” In the Internet age,...

February 16, 2022Howard Gleckman

Individual Taxes: TaxVox

The IRS Made Me File A Paper Return. Then Lost It

The IRS lost my 2020 tax return. Well, according to the notice I got yesterday, the IRS says it “never received” the return. But I’m...

January 26, 2022Howard Gleckman

: TaxVox

How Should Congress Fund Investments in The Internal Revenue Service’s Infrastructure?

Congress is moving toward rectifying the decade-long funding crisis at the IRS . The House is on track to adopt President Biden’s proposed $1.6 billion...

July 7, 2021Janet Holtzblatt

: TaxVox

Will Biden’s Plan to Reduce the Tax Gap by Increasing the IRS’s Budget Raise $300 Billion?

I —among many others —have called for more money for the Internal Revenue Service to enable it to collect even more money owed to the...

May 3, 2021Janet Holtzblatt

Individual Taxes: TaxVox

It’s About Your Total Tax Liability, Not Your Refund

People, if you want to know whether the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) was good for you or not, stop obsessing about the size...

February 12, 2019Howard Gleckman

Campaigns, Proposals, and Reforms: TaxVox

How Will Treasury Fill In the Blanks Of The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act?

When Congress passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) last December, it may have seemed like the end of a major policy initiative. But,...

April 17, 2018Howard Gleckman

Federal Budget and Economy: TaxVox

Asking the IRS To Do More With Less, Again

President Trump wants the IRS to “combat identity theft, prevent fraud, and reduce the deficit through the effective enforcement and administration of tax laws,” according...

March 16, 2017Howard Gleckman

Individual Taxes: TaxVox

Should The IRS Become a Consumer Agency Instead of a Tax Cop?

In her latest report to Congress , IRS Taxpayer Advocate Nina Olson made the provocative suggestion that her agency completely rethink its mission: “It should transform itself as a tax agency from one that is designed around nabbing the small percentage of the population that actively evades tax to

July 16, 2015Howard Gleckman

Individual Taxes: TaxVox

What Will Happen To Voluntary Tax Compliance If a Budget-constrained IRS Is Not Fixed?

Is the IRS such a mess that the nation’s system of voluntary tax compliance is at risk? Will frustrated taxpayers rebel because they can’t get help with a revenue code they can’t understand? Will aggressive taxpayers who recognize that audit rates have plummeted to the lowest levels in years

April 9, 2015Howard Gleckman

Federal Budget and Economy: TaxVox

The War on the IRS

The massive 2015 spending bill that President Obama is likely to sign this week continues an ongoing effort to trash the Internal Revenue Service. It is a cynical recipe for a self-fulfilling disaster: Give the agency more and more work. Cut its budget. Blame it for failing to do its job. Repeat.

December 16, 2014Howard Gleckman